Pregnancy related sick pay - nhs

Last year I was off for 9 months with severe depression. 6mths full pay 3 mths half pay. I had a successful return to work June last year. Jan this year I found out I was preggers. I immediately told work at 8 weeks as I in a high risk job regarding moving and handling and drugs - community nurse. (Methotrexate injections, moving bed bound people etc) I suffered from nausea and vomiting up to and including today - now 26 +3. This has resulted in 2 hospital admissions. I am now on week 4 of a 4 week sick cert. my question is this ..... Does my previous sick days count, and if so should I be on half pay? I have 9 weeks until enforced mat leave due to illness. With 3 weeks annual leave. Should I take a 6week sick note and offer to take 3 weeks annual leave prior to mat leave, or should I be on full pay in which case take 9 weeks sick note and use 3 weeks annual leave before April next year? What does HR say?

That link makes very clear that employees who are off with pregnancy related sickness are not entitled to more favourable treatment when it comes to sick pay.

Unless your internal policy specifically says differently, which I doubt, then your pay will be whatever it would be if your absence was for a non pregnancy-related condition, and for the purposes of calculating your entitlement to future sick pay, sick pay you've received for pregnancy-related conditions will certainly be counted.

You can't be penalised for pregnancy-related sickness, ie can't be disciplined, or have it taken into account in redundancy selection exercises, but you are not entitled to be treated more favourably than colleagues in terms of sick pay.

As Flowery said. The pregnancy related regulations are not 'positive' towards pregnant women, they are 'negative' towards discrimination.

That means that it is recognised that by virtue of being a woman, you may become pregnant. Pregnancy can bring sickness which is only related to pregnancy itself. So, women are protected against pregnancy-related illness being held against them.

I wasn't disputing whether or not they would apply to me but what status it would be under - ie I have already had 6 nth full pay so I would expect to be on half pay however last pay cheque was full pay. I'm so confused! I'm not trying to diddle anyone just trying to budget for a longer mat leave etc

"Calculation of Allowances14.6The period during which sick pay should be paid and the rate of sick pay for any period of absence is calculated by deducting from the employees entitlement on the first day of sickness the aggregate periods of paid sickness absence during the twelve months immediately preceding that day. In aggregating periods of absence due to illness no account will be taken of:- unpaid sick absence;- injuries or diseases sustained to members of staff in the actual discharge of their duties through no fault of their own;- injury resulting from a crime of violence not sustained on duty but connected with or arising from the employees employment where the injury has been the subject of payment by the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board;- as above, but an injury which has not been the subject of payment by the Board on grounds that it has not given rise to more than three weeks loss of earnings or was not one for which compensation above the minimum would arise.14.7 Sick pay paid to an employee under this scheme when added to any statutory sickness, injuries or compensation benefits, including any allowances for adult or child dependants, must not exceed full pay (see paragraph 14.4 above)." Agenda for Change

So, your sick note started sometime in the week beginning 6th May. They will have looked back and aggregated all absence from 6th May 2012 til 6th May 2013. You are entitled to 6 months' full pay, and 6 months' half pay. You used 1 month sick pay between May and June last year, leaving 5 months sick pay at full rate. That's how I read it.

Thank you sooooooooo much. That's given me some relief. I will remain positive until I hear from payroll proper. I was really worrying about paying bills etc and working out how I could manage returning on reduced role whilst being either sick or tiered from being sick. I can't even sell my body!!! joke